1st Trip to Disney? Avoid These 10 Mistakes!

Vacations are designed to whisk you away from reality and give you a break from the ho-hum of every day. A trip to Disney World is very pricey, and if you are not one of the lucky ones who make multiple trips each year, then you are saving and planning for your next your trip for what could be years. Or perhaps it just feels like years. If you make all these plans and pay all this money, how could you possibly screw it up?

1. You didn’t bring enough C.A.S.H.

We are not all using Disney Visas or MagicBands (formerly known as “room keys”) with charging abilities. Before you tell me that everybody has a credit card,Statistic Brain.comreports 1/4 of Americans have no credit card at all. Maybe that’s you, or maybe you’re currently trying not to use your credit card? Ever leave your MagicBand in the room or in your car? (Let me raise my hand in guilt on that one.)

You may need cash to make some of your purchase while in Orlando.

I’ve read quite a few Facebook discussions centered on how people didn’t take enough cash to pay for things that required actual physical money on vacation. Imagine not having access to money when you need it. Ever had trouble locating an ATM in the parks? There are ATMs on Main Street, U.S.A, at the Magic Kingdom and at the entrances to all the other theme parks. But if you are on the other side of the park, that can be a mighty long walk, and your feet will be really angry with you later.

Preventable walking = exhaustion = general miserableness

With a large degree of certainty, you will need cash for

toll roads

dining tips – possibly

bell hop tips

Mouse Keeping tips

anybody else who needs a tip

parking – possibly

late night snacks when you don’t have your room key or Visa with you (oops- ask me how my hungry kids knew this!)

Tip – If you bring ca$h, be sure to tuck it away somewhere so it’s safe from loss or theft. I have a friend that keeps money locked in her glove compartment, because wallets get misplaced, and credit cards can get denied.

Speaking of a Visa card…

Let me reiterate what I said before; everything is expensive at Disney. Do your research, and make sure you have enough money to get you through. I’m not suggesting you rack up a huge Visa bill, but if you generally pay for everything in ca$h, having a Visa available for emergencies is definitely advisable.

2. You do what you want no matter what.

You do everything, see everything, and ride everything you want to do no matter what the group wants to do. You are large and in charge.

Yes, I realize your vacation is costing you an arm and a leg, and I know some of you may not make it back to Orlando for a good long time. The word good here isn’t actually meant as good. But if you want to have good memories from your trip, you’ll need some flexibility. Plans change, even plans that were made six to eleven months in advance.

You can’t do it all. You can’t see it all.

If you have used the new Fastpass+ system, scheduling your passes 60 days before your trip, only to realize plans were changing, then you know you may need some flexibility.

Being inflexible = unhappy campers = questionable memories

You won’t make everybody in the family happy by the choices you make, but you can head off a lot of trouble just by being flexible and accepting of the changes that come your way. Look for finding a way to reach a happy medium if you are traveling with a large group or people of differing ages and heights.

3. You don’t rest enough.

I know the general notion is to arrive when the parks open and stay all day long. I read comments on the Internet all the time about sleeping when you get home from Orlando. “I’ll sleep when I get back.” Chances are, you know someone who follows that same philosophy – run yourself ragged on a Disney vacation and rest up at home.

Nearly every single planning bookI have ever readsuggests you arrive first thing in the morning. My dad followed this touring plan when I was growing up in the mid-70s, way before they even had real books or Internet touring guides, and by midnight, we were all completely exhausted. I had a blast, but waking up the next morning was truly brutal. I really don’t suspect my mom had much fun at all, and my parents haven’t been to Disney in 20 years. I’m going to attribute their current lack of interest to Over-Did-Disney exhaustion.

Many of our readers spend all day in the parks, from sun-up to way past sun-down, and they’ll do this for a week straight. This plan works for some, but it certainly it doesn’t work for others.

I’ve spent enough time in the Disney theme parks as an adult to see some of the biggest meltdowns from both kids and adults I have ever witnessed in a public place. (You can read about that here, and I’ve been told my quotes are startling:If You Do This on a Disney Vacation, You May Totally Regret It Later.)Tantrums and disagreements in your hometown grocery stores have nothing on meltdowns at Disney.

Lack of sleep + days on end = exhaustion= miserableness.

Take a cue from your family, and if they can’t handle a 16-hour day in the parks, day after grueling day, change things up.

Go in during the morning, go back to the hotel and rest or swim, and come back late that afternoon.

Sleep in, do Disney Springs mid-day or swim, and go to the parks late that afternoon.

True, this modified touring schedule may not provide as much park-time as you had hoped for, but it’s better than tears, frustration and shouting. I’ve seen it. Vacation Melt-Down Syndrome is like Disney Villain-kinda ugly.

4. You skipped the sunscreen.

Think a sunburn won’t happen to you?Web MD.com quotes the CDC as reporting more than one-third of adults and nearly 70% of children admit they’ve gotten sunburned within the past year. While there are lots of shady places, you will be in direct sun for the majority of your WDW vacation. “Sunny Orlando” is exactly why you’re here, right, to soak up some of that warm southern sun? I’ve read somewhere that most people who visit the First Aid Stations at the Disney parks arrive because of sun issues.

How soon a sunburn begins will depend on your skin type, the sun’s intensity, and how much time you spend exposed to the sun. And it can sneak up on you. Serious sunburn can cause the following:

Burned skin = pain = itchy peeling skin = general miserableness

5. You skipped the hand sanitizer.

You skipped washing your hands. You didn’t use hand sanitizer. Someone in the family picked up a nasty bug from one of the thousands of Disney visitors that run their sweaty, sticky, dirty, germy hands all over everything. And now you are all in big trouble.

I know there are people who think hand washing in the sink with soap is the only route to go, while other people prefer hand sanitizers. I’m not going to get into the middle of that debate, but I will point out there is no bathroom in line for Space Mountain, and that stand-by wait can last up to 120 minutes or more. You’re standing in line to greet the Frozen gals, stand-by lines that were lasting over four hours after their initial park arrival way back when, and you don’t think the kids will put their hands in their mouths as they eat a snack, in line? I’m so old, I won’t even tell you my age, but I’ll readily admit I touch everything on vacation from Pirate castle walls to Christmas decorations in gift shops.

And so will your children, if they put their phones down long enough.

Soap and water won’t help you in long line, on monorails or boats, or unable to locate a restroom within what feels like half a mile.

80 percent of common infections, including the H1N1 flu virus, can be spread through contaminated hands. James Scott, a microbiologist at the University of Toronto’s Dalla Lana School of Public Health said, “A hand sanitizer cleans your hands much better than soap and water, so it reduces the bacterial burden to a much greater extent than soap and water. And your hands tend to stay cleaner longer than if you were to use soap and water.”

I am the first one to admit I abhor most hand sanitizers, and I teach public school, so I have to use it every day. I hate the smell and the texture, but mainly I really dislike the smell.

I have found $1.50 bottles of Bath & Body Works hand sanitizer to be the best thing going. They come in kid friendly colors, scents like cupcake and strawberry, and you can find them on sale for $1 every now and then, making these a fabulously cheap investment for your vacation.

And to handle that amount of mileage, you will absolutely need to do some training.

You will walk your little tootsies off, and so will your kids. They need to be training for Disney as well. I actually paid my own children $.10 for every mile they walked in a three-month period for a trip years ago. Think that’s crazy and indulgent? It cost me $20 at the most and saved me stress, headaches, and tears, both theirs and mine. It saved my back too, because I didn’t have to physically carry them through the parks.

Get out and do some walking now, and your body will definitely thank you later.

Tired feet + aching muscles = unhappiness and miserableness

Walking ahead of time is so important, we devoted an entire article to it. I can not over-estimate how much you need to read this one Disney tip. It’s mega Mickey Ears important.

7. You vacationed during the worst possible times to travel.

Can you imagine how many people planned their first Disney trip for the worst time of year to go, thinking it was the best? When someone tells me they hate Disney and never want to go back, I immediately ask when they traveled. Guess what? It’s almost always Christmas, anther busy holiday, or summer. I’ve vacationed in Orlando during all those times, and I can’t blame them for disliking the huge crowds. The blame comes with improper planning.

Huge crowds = long lines = standing and waiting = miserableness

The general Disney rule of thumb is that if the kids are out of school, this is the most crowded time to go, even if scheduling-wise, this is the best time to actually leave town for the vacation. Here are several articles to help you with specific times to visit Disney.

8. You arrived pretty clueless.

Ok, speaking of planning, Walt Disney World is seriously huge. Resorts, theme parks, water parks, mini-golf, Disney Springs, and so on and on. It’s really too much for you to do in one vacation. There is an entire row of travel books dedicated to Orlando and WDW in Books-A-Million. Why? Because going to Disney these days requires planning and reading and scheming.

What was manageable when the Magic Kingdom opened in 1971 is now a race to do it all, see it all, and survive to buy the t-shirt, if you can afford the shirt much less the trip.

Do your research.

How tall do kids need to be to ride certain rides? Ever watched a child have a tantrum because they couldn’t get on a ride? It’s awful.

What are the least busy days for certain parks?

What time do the parks open and close while you will be there?

Where are the best restaurants for your diverse group?

When can you schedule your Advanced Dining Reservations? This varies depending on your accommodations.

When can you schedule your three Fastpass+ rides? This varies depending on your accommodations and or your type of tickets.

Poor planning = wasted time = miserableness

Do your research. Will you feel relaxed planning this vacation? Not always, but it pays to be prepared.

9. You wore the wrong shoes.

I am a people-watcher by nature, so I get a vast amount of amusement when a pretty girl, holding hands with her date, teeters and then totters by me wearing four-inch high heels. Was this a surprise outing to Disney? Those flip-flops with no arch support for miles of walking, was that really the best you could do for 12 hours of theme parking? House shoes? Yes, I have also seen them shuffling down Main Street. You would really be surprised by the number of high heels you will see in the parks as well.

But just as one vacation plan won’t work for every family visiting Disney, shoes are the same way. What I wear may not be right for you. Certain brands of flip-flops can be great, and some of my readers love their house shoes and their Birkenstocks. As long as you are prepared to walk miles and miles and miles in whatever shoes you bring, you should be fine.

A smart planner will definitely leave the Disney Princess heels at home. What shoes would our readers suggest you wear on vacation?

10. You left your patience at home.

Vacations are stressful. No matter how much planning you put into your trip, there may still be a time when things go wrong. If you want to make it worse, just leave your patience at home.

You are paying a lot of $$ for this journey, and you’ve invested a lot of time and energy into planning what you know with utmost certainly will be “the perfect vacation.” The problem is almost nothing is ever perfect. And if you go into your trip with the mindset that everything will be perfect, you could be in for a big disappointment.

Crazy expectations + lack of patience = freaking out + tantrums = miserableness for you and everybody around you

Deep breaths, calming thoughts, and a “This too shall pass” attitude will be needed if/when things fall apart. We have some tips for the adults on how to keep your calm during vacations.

Amanda Major is the creator of cheapskateprincess.com. She remembers her first visit to Magic Kingdom like it was yesterday, because she had a ham sandwich tucked in her shorts pocket. The whole family snuck in their lunch; you can’t make that kinda stuff up. 40 years worth of trips to Orlando later, she is still trying to save money on vacations.

Amanda is a Disney Vacation Club Member and Annual Pass holder. Her amazing husband, band director Carl Major, plus three teen children and two dogs keep her busy. Amanda teaches Leadership to high school seniors in the almost-coastal town of Foley, Alabama. Read about her cheapskating local vacations with this link. When she’s not writing, she’s reading, walking somewhere, or paddling a kayak. Life is indeed a blast.